Silicon Valleywood

And the Labels Will Love It July 6, 2006

Amongst the Microsoft iPod killer stories, is one of those bits that — if true — is very cool:

To attract current iPod users Microsoft is going to let you download for free any songs you’ve already bought from the iTunes Music Store. They’ll actually scan iTunes for purchased tracks and then automatically add those to your account. Microsoft will still have to pay the rights-holders for the songs, but they believe it’ll be worth it to acquire converts to their new player.

Most people have 20 or fewer iTunes on their iPods, so it’s not as crazily expensive as it sounds. Our surveys suggest heavier users buy 50-60 paid-for songs/year (Figure 13). And of course, there’s that nutcase with 10,000. You just know he’ll buy one. (Odd, I can’t find the reference; maybe it’s an urban myth.)